How Jack Met Zero
by KidatHeart5
Summary: This is my account of how Zero became Jack's pet.
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I don't own "The Nightmare Before Christmas"_

Jack Skellington was preparing for the big Halloween event as usual. He was still interested in the spirit of the holiday. He was practicing his scares when a scratching was heard at his door. "Not now!" he hissed. When the scratching persisted and a whining was heard, he growled, "Ah! All right! But by the time I reach that door, you better be out of here!"

To his surprise, when he opened the door, he looked down to see a white beagle dog with brown ears and a brown spot over his left eye. Jack decided this was the perfect opportunity to test one of his scares. He growled and roared at the dog, but he didn't seem to move. Jack tried to scare him many times, but failed. By then, his ego was hurt and he suddenly became very depressed. He lamented as he sat down on his porch, "Have I finally lost my touch? Have I lost my ability to scare?"

"Without scaring people, I'm…nothing. Jack Skellington, a nothing?!" Jack then held his head in his bony hands and began to cry. The dog, taking pity of the skeleton, leaned towards him and licked away his tears. Jack pulled himself together and said, "All right, all right. I can still scare people, but oddly, not you."

He pointed to the dog's brown patch and remarked, "That brown spot reminds me of zero. And that's what I shall call you: Zero!" Zero yipped with joy of his newfound name. Jack happily played with his new dog the whole day. At nearly sundown, Mayor found Jack playing fetch with Zero in the town square. Mayor switched to his unhappy side and scolded, "Jack! Where have you been?!"

Jack was surprised and exclaimed, "Oh! Hello, Mr. Mayor. I was thinking of doing this year's Halloween act with my new dog, Zero." The mayor looked at this brave dog and switched to his happy side. Then, he said, "Well…he certainly doesn't scare easily. That might prove to be a great advantage." As he exited, Jack cheered that Zero was going to be in the show with him.

After getting a few props from the attic, Jack chuckled, "Oh, Zero, you're going to love your part. You're going to scare the heck out of the crowd." But when he set down the box, Zero was nowhere to be found.


	2. Chapter 2

Meanwhile, in the graveyard, Zero was being chased by Oogie Boogie's henchmen. They were relentlessly calling to him and chasing him. They all ran into the woods when suddenly, the dog tripped on a log and fell very hard into a very prickly briar patch. The kids were going to look for Zero when they heard Jack call out his name. "Let's get out of here!" Lock hissed. "I agree!" Shock whispered as the trio ran away.

Just then, Jack appeared as he called out, "Zero! Zero!" Before too long, he found Zero's body in the briar patch. "Zero! Can you hear me? Answer me!" he frantically said.

When he realized his dog was dead, tears streamed down his face as he mourned, "Oh, Zero. We would've made a great team, you and I." He continued crying as he carried Zero back to the graveyard, constructed a headstone for him, and buried him. He chokingly gave a eulogy as he gave his once-faithful pet a nice funeral. He couldn't bear to return home, so he treaded to the hill and cried himself to sleep for the night.

The next morning, Jack mournfully returned home, unaware that the ghost of Zero sympathetically followed him. All through the day, Jack just lied on the couch until the mayor said, "Jack! Pull yourself together or they'll be no show at all! Please, Jack! Please!" Jack only sighed, "I'll do my best, then."

At dusk, he tried really hard to practice, but couldn't focus with the death of Zero in his mind. He began to sob, "Oh, what's the use?! I can't train without Zero here!" He collapsed to the floor lamenting, "He was the best dog I've ever owned! Without him, Halloween won't be the same!" As Jack bawled, Zero dissolved through the wall and licked his master's face to wipe away the tears.

"No. Not now, Zero." Jack choked. Just then, he cast a second look at his ghost dog and cheered gleefully, "Zero, you're a ghost! Isn't it grand? Now you can my dog _and _a ghost for Halloween!" Zero yipped for joy as Jack declared, "Come on, Zero. We've got an act to perform!" Thanks to Jack's returning joy and pride, their performance went swimmingly and they lived happily together for years to come.

The End


End file.
